1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to the field of providing an electrical charge to a charge storage device and more particularly to the field of contactless charging of batteries using RF radiation.
2. Description of Related Art
Electronic devices, in particular electronic devices used for wireless communication, are typically powered by rechargeable batteries, capacitors or photoelectric cells. Photoelectric cells may not provide adequate power under low light conditions. Rechargeable batteries and capacitors and devices with built-in batteries, all of which will subsequently be referred to as batteries, have to recharged periodically, which is typically done by placing the battery in a charger to establish a path for the electric charging current between the battery and the charger.
It is also known to charge batteries by electromagnetic induction. In this case, the battery includes a pick-up coil which is placed in close proximity to an electromagnetic transmitting coil to intercept the electromagnetic flux lines of the transmitting coil. Typically, one transmitting coil is required for each battery to be charged.
Batteries may also be permanently incorporated or sealed inside an electronic apparatus, with none of the electrical connections being accessible from the outside. Moreover, situations may arise where a large number of batteries has to be charged simultaneously and/or the external dimensions, shape and contact arrangement of batteries may make it difficult to place and connect a large number of batteries in a charging device at the same time. In addition, the low power consumption of today's electronic devices may make it feasible to use batteries with a smaller storage capacity and to charge these batteries more frequently.
Therefore, a need exists for an improved arrangement for recharging a battery, particularly for bulk recharging a large number of batteries without positioning the batteries proximal to an electrical contact or an electromagnetic induction coil.